(WICHITA, Kan.) — It's the peak of summer and the peak for water consumption. That means a busy time for Wichita Public Works as it repairs water main breaks across the city.
“People are using a lot more water and therefore there's a lot of water going through the distribution systems,” said Wichita Public Works assistant director Joe Pajor.
Combined with heat, it's a lot of pressure for water pipes to handle.
“This particular pipe because of the material its made from is very strong, but very rigid. So when the soil moves the pipe is not going to have any give to it,” said Pajor.
That's when water mains break city wide. Crews responded to one Wednesday before noon at Harry & Webb. That was one of eight they had to deal with Wednesday. Another in a neighborhood near South Webb impacted 22 homes. Crews say the breaks are inevitable and not much can be done to prevent them.
